Newsletter: March 2007

A mixture of news and events from the UK literary world – and beyond – this month...

Things started off with the predictable prize excitement when first time novelist Stef Penney won the inaugural Costa Book of the Year Award (http://www.costabookawards.com/) with The Tenderness of Wolves. The publicity-shy writer promptly admitted that she’d never set foot in Canada, where the book is set, but did all her research at the British Library.

Novelist Martin Amis has cemented his place in the canon of contemporary English literature by finally joining academia. It was announced that the author of London Fields and Money is to join Manchester University (http://www.arts.manchester.ac.uk/cnw/postgraduatestudy/index.htm) as its new Professor of Creative Writing.

The centenary of the birth of poet W.H. Auden was 21 February, but it was generally felt that celebrations were more enthusiastic in the United States, where Auden chose to live, than in the UK. According to The Guardian (http://books.guardian.co.uk/news/articles/0,,2018481,00.html), the ‘cocktail party and several small soirees’ held here constituted ‘muted celebrations’.

Despite the fact that it’s not published until 21 July, the seventh and final instalment of the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling (http://www.contemporarywriters.com/authors/?p=auth03D22J591912635584) has already entered the UK bestseller list – at number one, of course – on pre-orders alone. And at number two – what else? It’s the adult version.

At the end of February the British Council sent writers Matt Whyman (http://www.contemporarywriters.com/authors/?p=auth519D26D11b13a1608CWgY4203A26) and Jamila Gavin (http://www.contemporarywriters.com/authors/?p=auth519D1C3A07dcd22FD0qGi3E9DFF1) on an odyssey to central and southern Russia to run a series of creative writing workshops for students, teachers and librarians. They’ve been blogging (/weblog/) from deepest Siberia, via EnCompass, about their experiences, so check out their never less than amusing posts if you can.

Susan Tranter

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